


Grand Pas de Deux

by Lynx22281



Category: Supernatural
Genre: Ballet AU, Boys in Ballet Shoes, M/M, The Nutcracker Ballet, dancer!cas, dancer!dean
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2014-12-20
Updated: 2014-12-20
Packaged: 2018-03-02 07:25:56
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,268
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/2804378
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Lynx22281/pseuds/Lynx22281
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>It's Dean's last night dancing as the Sugar Plum Fairy's Cavalier.  Where's Cas when he needs a little bit of last minute good luck?</p>
            </blockquote>





	Grand Pas de Deux

**Author's Note:**

  * Inspired by [These Bleeding Feet (Dance Only For You)](https://archiveofourown.org/works/2650010) by [JinxedAmbitions](https://archiveofourown.org/users/JinxedAmbitions/pseuds/JinxedAmbitions). 



> Here is my Destiel Christmas fic!
> 
> One of my personal Christmas traditions is to rewatch The Nutcracker. I've only seen it live twice, the last time when I was in middle school and one of my friends was in the local dance company that put on the performance. My all-time favorite version is the 1977 Baryshikov/Kirkland version. I remember watching it on TV when I was little. I found a DVD copy of it when I was in college. The film quality is HORRIBLE and it's not the most complete version of the ballet, but I still love it!

“Hey, Charlie,” Dean whispered to the red-haired stage manager as she stood by the podium monitor watching the corps get into place for the _Waltz of the Flowers_.  He nervously smoothed the hunter green velvet of his cropped military jacket over his white unitard, his thumb catching on one of the jacket’s shiny brass buttons.  “Have you seen Cas?”

 

“Not since intermission when Garth was trying to help him get out of that stupid mouse-king head,” she whispered back, giving a pair of Mother Ginger’s children the side-eye as they giggled over something behind the heavy velvet curtain.  Flapping her hand to get their attention, she pressed a finger to her mouth and they scurried off to another part of backstage.

 

“Do you know if he went out in the audience?”  He’d hoped to see Cas and get his customary _Break a leg!_ before going on stage. 

“Probably not.  Packed house tonight.  Completely sold out.  The box office had to release the nose-bleed seats usually held for the students.”  She hit a button on her mic set and gave a command regarding the upcoming light change to the techies in the booth, turning her attention back to the technical aspect of the show.

 

This was Dean’s last night of playing the Sugar Plum Fairy’s Cavalier with the academy.  He was graduating in the spring and would be with the American Ballet Company in New York next December.  This could very well be the last time he’d ever dance the part of the Cavalier now that he was going to be dancing on the same stage as some of the biggest names in the ballet world.  He was about to enter a world where Cas’s face wouldn’t be a familiar sight in darkness of backstage, but he’d hoped to savor each and every minute in the meantime.  Now, he was missing out on crucial Cas-time since the other dancer was nowhere to be seen.

 

Sighing, he walked over to his place by the curtain to wait for his cue.  He had to think of something else, to get his head back in the performance, before he ended up going out as the Sugar Plum Fairy’s _Depressed_ Cavalier. 

 

Out on the floor, eight pairs of dancers in pastel colored costumes floated on light feet as the orchestra trilled through the three-four timed dance.  Weeks of, at times torturous, practice had culminated into the best show of _The Nutcracker_ that Dean had seen in his six years at the academy.  He was so proud to be a part of one of the most excellent student companies in the country.

 

The corps froze in their final tableau as the waltz came to its conclusion.  During the pause for applause, Dean took a deep breath and put on his game face, the serene, relaxed smile that all dancers perfected to make the audience think that what they did on stage was the easiest thing in the world, that they weren’t really tromping around like elephants in satin shoes.

 

The slow, rhythmic arpeggios that signaled the start of the _Grand Pas de Deux_ rose up from harp in the orchestra pit and Dean took his first carefully measured steps out amongst the fantastical set pieces of the Nutcracker Prince’s castle.

 

He was no more than three steps onto the stage when he slowly extended his arm, inviting the Sugar Plum Fairy out from stage-right to begin their duet.

 

Dean faltered.

 

That wasn’t Ruby in her confection-like pink and mint green tutu coming towards him.

 

No, stepping gracefully towards him wearing a stunning a navy blue velvet bolero jacket and a white cravat over his white bodysuit was Castiel.  The dark-haired dancer gave Dean a wink and soft smile as he approached.

 

Somehow Dean’s feet managed to keep going until they met in the middle of the floor.  Castiel’s hand slid, warm and familiar, into Dean’s and they slowly walked towards the back of the set before beginning the shadowed steps of the dance, Cas going up on his toes in white shoes that elongated the strong, beautiful lines of his thighs and calves.  Dean placed his hands at Cas’s waist, guiding him through the first series of _pirouettes_ before they broke apart to move across the width of the stage.

 

Dean’s body automatically performed the movements ingrained into his muscles as his mind kept up a continuous loop of _Oh my god!  I’m dancing the pas de deux with Cas!  Holy shit!  This is awesome!  Oh fuck!  Hope I don’t drop him!_

 

Throughout the _Adagio_ , Dean caught Cas’s eye every time he lifted Cas up from the ground, every time he lent Cas his arm as a prop while he held an _arabesque_.  He knew they looked like a couple of unprofessional, sappy love-struck goons staring soulfully at each other, but he couldn’t care less.  He was finally dancing on stage with the partner he’d wanted to dance with since he’d first entered the academy.

 

In all of the weeks of rehearsals and nights of performance, he’d never felt this excited about dancing his part, though it was easily his all-time favorite.  His hands had never tingled as they kept a firm grip on Ruby’s lithe body through the lifts and jumps.  He’d never paid attention to the lines of her body while she took her solo steps away from him as he waited patiently to the side until she needed him to be a living, breathing _barre_ for her moves.  Now, he was 100% absorbed in the feel and sight of Cas.

 

Cas danced the part _en pointe_ with the kind of strong, assured elegance that Dean had only ever seen in the best female dancers and he felt himself near to bursting with pride at his danseur boyfriend, who danced the part as if it has been made especially for him.

 

They finished the final _pirouette_ flawlessly as the music rose to its final measures.  Dean lifted Cas one last time for a _fish dive_ with his nose just a foot from the floor as the _Adagio_ ended, before gently setting him back down so they could take their bows. 

 

The house was absolutely silent for the space of two panted breaths. 

 

Despite knowing that Cas had danced just as good as, if not better than, Ruby, Dean worried for an instant that they were about to be booed off the stage.  Male dancers _en pointe_ were supposed to be comical, not dramatic.  Even though _The Nutcracker_ was a pretty light-hearted ballet, it was still a serious work that required true talent from its dancers and musicians.  Maybe the audience just wasn’t ready to see two men dancing a duet.

 

Before Dean could even cast a wary eye towards Cas, the audience erupted in massive applause.

 

They smiled, big and relieved, at each other.  Dean brought Cas’s knuckles up to his lips before letting the other dancer go so they could run backstage before the next piece began.

 

Dean hardly had time to notice that the entire company and most of the crew were crowded together in the wings and had been watching him dance with Cas before he had to hurry back out to catch the first breathy woodwind notes of the _Tarantella_.

 

The choreography of his solo was designed to show off the power of his legs through a minute-long sequence of jumps and leaps across the stage.  His series of _tour en l’air_ were nearly gravity defying in their smoothness and pulled a smattering of surprised applause from the audience after their perfect execution.  He felt light as a feather and invigorated as the music ended, knowing that in just a few minutes he’d get to dance with Castiel again. 

 

He took his bow before rushing off to stage-left, catching a glimpse of Cas just as he walked from behind a curtain further up stage.

 

Dean stood as close as he dared to the edge of the curtain to watch Cas begin the most famous solo in the entire ballet – the _Dance of the Sugar Plum Fairy_.

 

Cas tip-toed out to center in beat with the pizzicato from the strings, more in time with the music than Ruby had ever been.  The preciseness of his footwork put the other dancer to shame, at least in Dean’s opinion.  Despite being such an airy, almost feminine dance, Cas made it his own and interpreted it with a delicate, masculine strength. 

 

Dean was mesmerized watching him spin to the finish.  He clapped from the wings, adding his applause with that of the audience before he rushed to take his place for the final part of their duet.

 

The _Coda_ started with Dean leaping from upstage left to downstage right across the diagonal length of the floor before doing a series of turning leaps in a wide circle followed by Cas spinning out from behind the curtain like a blue and white dervish.  They came together again in the center, dancing in mirror to one another.  The dance ended with Dean’s hands back on Cas’ waist as Cas spun in one final _pirouette_.

 

Thunderous ovation began the instant the conductor gave the cut off.  The floor of the stage shook with the force of the applause from the audience and the dozens of people watching from the curtains.  Dean saw half of the orchestra’s heads poking up curiously over the edge of the stage trying to catch a glimpse of what had caused the increased praise from the house; they were visibly surprised to see Cas standing next to Dean instead of Ruby.

 

Grinning bright and happy, Dean leaned over to give Cas a quick peck on the cheek in full view of the whole world before tugging him along to exit the stage.

 

“What was that?!”  Dean exclaimed, once they were safely behind the curtain.

 

“Surprise?” Cas replied, sheepishly looking up at him through the dark fringe of his lashes.

 

“You could have told me what you were up to!” he admonished, but the grin never left his face.

 

Charlie shushed them as the chorus and character dancers from the second act took their places for the final waltz.  Thankfully the music started up loud and brassy, easily covering up any noise from behind the heavy curtains.

 

Cas wrapped his arms around Dean’s shoulders, pulling him in close so they could whisper to each other.

 

“I didn’t want to risk word getting around to Crowley about what was going on.  He would have put a stop to it since he nixed our idea before rehearsals even started.  Ruby and Charlie are the only two people who knew what was going to happen.”

 

“I can’t believe Ruby gave up her big dance.”

 

“It wasn’t too hard to convince her to let me have it for one night when I told her that my big brother was Mikhail Novakov with the Moscow Ballet and that I’d put in a good word on her behalf.”  Cas went by an Americanization of his last name at school because he didn’t want people’s judgment of his talent to be based off of the talents of his famous mother and older brothers.  Dean supposed he was one of the few people on campus who knew the truth about Castiel’s family. 

 

Dean leaned in for a kiss.  Cas tasted like the wintergreen mints Charlie kept in her pockets on performance nights.

 

"Hopefully, this will convince Crowley to let us have our own dance in the Spring Showcase,” Cas said against Dean’s lips as their stage manager poked Dean in the back.

 

“Hate to break up the little love fest here, but you’ve gotta go back out,” Charlie said, shooing them out onto the stage to dance their way into the last piece of the show with the rest of the cast.

 

There was a little more passion, a little more spring in the steps of each dancer as the last show of the season came to a close.  The energy generated by Dean and Cas during their duet had infected the whole theater and the air was electrified with it.

 

The stage cleared out slowly as the ethereal music of the _Apotheosis_ began for the final scene where young Clara woke up from her dream with the toy Nutcracker by her side.  The front curtain dropped and the dancers dashed around to take their places one more time before the curtain rose again.

 

In groups and pairs, the dancers came back out on stage for their bows – the flowers, the members of the Prince’s court, the characters from the Land of Sweets, and Godfather Drosselmeyer.  The Nutcracker Prince and Clara entered together, hand-in-hand, followed by Ruby who took a bow on her own – she had still danced as the Sugar Plum Fairy in the opening scenes of Act II.

 

Finally Charlie pushed Dean and Cas out together.  The magnitude of the applause increased ten-fold.

 

Camera flashes lit up the floor and balcony of the theater.  The soloists bowed a second time, a third time, again and again.  The conductor came up on stage for his bow.  The orchestra stood in the pit for acknowledgement.  Stagehands brought out flowers for the soloists.  The ovation went on, seemingly, forever until it became a surreal blur. 

 

Throughout it all, Dean kept Cas’s hand firmly clasped in his.  Just as the curtain closed for the last time, Dean caught a glimpse of Cas, pink-cheeked, blue eyes staring out at the crowd with wonder, and smiling the biggest smile Dean had ever seen on his face.

 

 _Best Christmas ever_ , Dean thought with a grin.

**Author's Note:**

> Grand Pas de Deux from the Nutcracker Ballet- [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bBih0X_Cdn0#t=239 ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bBih0X_Cdn0#t=239)
> 
> Dean’s Tarantella - <https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Zhoarl9fuPI> (I liked this choreography better than the one in the Grand Pas de Deux video. I picture Dean as more of a leaper than a spinner!)
> 
> American Ballet Company and the last-second switch of the ‘female’ lead in a duet are a nod to my favorite dance movie, _Center Stage_.


End file.
